Misty Monday, thundering Tuesday

Jharkhand woke up to a foggy morning on Monday, but commuters were spared high risk with the visibility remaining 1,000 metres before 7am and improving thereafter.

Train and flight schedules were not disrupted either, but overcast conditions and intermittent showers continued throughout the day.

Tuesday too will be damp with rain and thunder, confirmed forecast officials.

Weathermen attributed the inclement weather to a cyclonic circulation over north coastal Andhra Pradesh and its adjoining areas.

“The cyclonic circulation that was prevailing over Odisha and Gangetic Bengal on Sunday has become weak. But, another circulation has formed over Andhra. Hence, cloudy skies and drizzling were reported at a few places. The prevailing weather is resulting in heavy moisture incursion into the atmosphere,” explained A.E. Kujur, a forecast official at Ranchi Met centre.

Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Daltonganj and several other parts of the state witnessed early morning fog. The visibility improved to 2,000 metres only around 8.30am.

“The fog was caused by heavy moisture incursion into the atmosphere. The wind is drawing good amount of moisture. We have issued a forecast of rain and thundershowers at several places in the next 24-hours,” said the duty officer at Patna Meteorological Centre.

According to the official, this adverse weather was expected to continue for a few days. “The skies will clear around March 14,” he said.

The cloud cover, meanwhile, caused a drop in maximum temperatures across the state.

“The day readings in most parts of the state was two to three degrees below the normal. The minimum temperatures, on the other hand, witnessed a rise because clouds obstruct terrestrial radiation,” explained a weatherman in Patna.